Same Hill, Different Day by Paul Octavious. There's something magical about Paul Octavious' series, Same Hill, Different Day, that I can't quite describe. Maybe it's that it reminds me of Kevin Day's beautiful series where he photographed one dead tree throughout all the different seasons. Or perhaps it's because Octavious shows us how a simple hill - in Lincoln Park, Chicago - can take on different moods depending on who's on it. For over four years now, Octavious has been taking photos of that same hill documenting all sorts of different occasions. "Each time I come to the hill, a new story is told to me as if the hill is my stage and the locals are the actors in this daily play," he said.
For the photo above, my favorite, he said, "On this particular day, over two-hundred people gathered on the hill and flew kites of all different kinds. Seeing this for the first time was a moment I won’t soon forget. " Paul Octavious' website. Magical Photos of the Mysterious Woods. Starting June 28 and continuing to August 17, come to ClampArt gallery in New York to see a fantastic new show called Into the Woods.
The group exhibition brings together artworks that range from the mysterious to the sublime. From Adam Ekberg's magical photo of a disco ball on a snowy mountain to David Nadel's stunning presentation of a burned forest, you'll get to witness drastically different interpretations of the magnificent woods. A photographer we've featured right here on My Modern Met, Caleb Charland, will also be showing a few works. If you haven't seen his artistically "scientific" photos, make sure to check those out, too. "Anything can happen in the woods.... " - Cinderella's Prince ClampArt Gallery website.
Giant Crouching Man Patiently Awaits Global Warming. Crouching at 85 feet tall and weighing about 60 tons, Antony Gormley's Exposure sculpture is rooted to ground in central Netherlands, reacting over time to the changing environment. Riddled with funding problems, It took nearly six years to complete. "One of the known environmental changes that is happening is the rising of the sea level through global warming," explains Gormley. "It is critical to me that at the time of its making this work reacts with the viewer, the walking viewer, on the top of the polder and that the surface that the viewer stands on is the surface that the work stands on. The work cannot have a plinth. Over time, should the rising of the sea level mean that there has to be a rising of the dike, this means that there should be a progressive burying of the work. " The first step in the making of the sculpture was for Gormley to cast himself in plaster.
As one approaches the sculpture, Gormley says: "The nature of the object changes. Bande des Quatres Jewelry. With so many jewelry lines out there these days it’s hard to stand out from the next, but that’s just what Bande des Quatres does. The relatively new collaborative line is based in New York City and was conceived by Erin Wahed and is made by Canadian jeweler Janis Kerman. Each statement piece was inspired by either an architect or a Bauhaus artist and was designed as “wearable architecture.” Pictured above is the Eames bracelet. Ando ring Saarinen bracelet Pei ring Meier ring Eisenman bracelet Koolhaas ring Gehry ring Gabo ring Breuer ring Brandt ring Kandinsky ring Hadid ring The collection is a mix of rings and bracelets that are made to order, all in precious metals and gemstones.
Lying Back and Watching the Skies in Silence. How often do we stop and just take a moment to ourselves to marvel at what's around us? Perhaps in passing we may take notice of a pretty flower or, on the off-chance, we may even avert our eyes to the skies and observe a familiar figure in the clouds, but this happens far too infrequently. Dutch artist Rob Sweere seeks to change this with his traveling social project titled Silent Sky Project#. The artistic experiment basically invites people to take 30 minutes out of their day to lay in silence amongst one another, taking in the majestic skies. Whether it's just a couple basking in the sun or a crowd of people taking over a vast landscape with their bodies laying still on their backs, the project has a calming effect for participants on a personal level. The project has reached countries across the globe from the artist's native land of the Netherlands to Brazil, Lithuania, Turkey, Australia, England, France, Korea, and America, including the bustling urban setting of New York City.
Magnificent Sculpture: Kiss of Death. Located at Barcelona's Poblenou Cemetery, this magnificent sculpture, titled Kiss of Death (El Petó de la Mort in Catalan and El Beso de la Muerte in Spanish), depicts death (in the form of a winged skeleton) planting a kiss on a young man's forehead. According to the story, in 1930, the Llaudet family was mourning the death of their son and created this sculpture for his tomb. The epitaph bears famous verses by one of Catalan's greatest poets, Jacint Verdaguer: “And his young heart can not help; in his veins the blood stops and freezes and encouragement lost faith embraces fall feeling the kiss of death” Photo credit: 1. .
Hyperrealistic Comic Book Paintings. Myoung Ho Lee's Simply Beautiful Tree Portraits. It's a simple idea, really. Stick a white canvas behind a tree found in nature and take a picture. Then again, some of the best ideas come down to execution. For each of these photos, South Korean photographer Myoung Ho Lee singles out one tree in his native country and then places it against a stark white backdrop. His large, 60 by 45 feet canvases are brought in by a production crew with heavy cranes and then extraneous components of the canvas support system, like ropes and bars, are later removed by digital retouching.
The result? The backdrops look like they're floating. Lee not only searches for a specific tree with a certain "personality," to add to its character, he also chooses a season and time of day. Of course, one has to ask, "Why a tree? " Myoung Ho Lee at Yossi Milo Gallery's website via [Black Eiffel] Vostok Cabin by Atelier Van Lieshout. Dutch studio Atelier Van Lieshout have created a mobile, indestructible dwelling with an armoured shell. Made of steel plates reclaimed from boats, the living unit is furnished with benches, a toilet and a wood stove. Called Vostok Cabin, the project was commissioned by Fondation 93 and is on show at the Cite de la Science in Paris until 13 March 2011. See all our stories about Atelier Van Lieshout » Here are some more details from Atelier Van Lieshout: Atelier Van Lieshout, Vostok Cabin, 2010 Huge change is no longer in the past or future but in the present.
Value systems of yesterday are no longer relevant. The changing climate, growing poverty, wars and more are only expanding. The armored shelter is made from old steel plates recuperated from demolished boats together with other leftover material from our current society. The material due to its previous life is crooked, damaged and irregular. Inside you find an improvised toilet, woodstove, and benches.
See also: Just in Case by Menosunocerouno. If the year 2012 does bring the world to an end, Mexican branding company Menosunocerouno plan to face the apocalypse in style with a survival kit that includes chocolate and hard liqueur. Packaged in yellow and black, the Just in Case kit also includes more practical items like matches, a knife and water, plus a notebook in case they start to feel philosophical or need to light a fire. The limited edition kit will be available in selected design stores in Mexico.
Here's some more information from Menosunocerouno: End-of-the-world survival kit, crafted and designed in Mexico by Menosunocerouno. If the world ends this year, we better be happily ready. Expecting a beautiful chaos, MENOSUNOCEROUNO created JUST IN CASE ®, the perfect brand for the end of times. Our survival kit re-packages a collection of iconic products from Mexico to enjoy in no particular order. The perfect gift for friends and clients (only the ones we want to keep). Modern mexican design for the end of times. Enjoy! Surreal Flying Houses Travel Through the Sky. The animated feature film Up may have introduced the masses to the image of a house being whisked away into the sky, but France-based photographer Laurent Chehere expands on the visual with a variety of residential structures surreally captured in mid-air.
The aptly titled series Flying Houses takes suburban homes and urban apartment buildings out of their defining neighborhood backdrops and places them floating amidst the clouds. The collection of photo manipulations really showcases the visual effectiveness of building design sans a disruptive environment. The levitating edifices each represent a different lifestyle dreamily gliding high above the surface. The series is said to be a metaphor for travel. Laurent Chehere website via [Junkculture] Clever Illustrations: Copywriter vs. Art Director. The Machine Ready for a set of clever illustrations? Like that funny series Paris vs. New York, Copywriter vs. Art Director pits two similar but quite opposing subjects together in a quick and witty way. While a copywriter will always have a way with words, armed with the job of creating copy to market products, an art director must convey a concise vision. They're the ones in charge of the overall visual appearance, tasked to create a mood.
With that in mind, check out these new illustrations that show the eternal dispute between copywriters and art directors. The Brush The Moleskin What My Mom Thinks I Do The Colors Reading Time The File The App The Social Network The Reason for Our Anger The Tattoo Leaving the Agency.